Reportage November 1: Turkish Delight and Indians Ahoy!

Turkish Consul General Korhan Kemik did not shy away from taking a strong line on July’s coup d’état during the Turkish National Day reception on 31 October. While hailing Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, founder and first president of the Republic of Turkey, Mr Kemik called for solidarity to protect the nation and uphold democracy in face of alleged terrorist attacks.

Chief Secretary Carrie Lam, the guest of honour, congratulated and thanked Mr Kemik for having his second child born in Hong Kong and help the city booth its low birthrate, adding that she’d like to see a Turkish version of Le French May or Bellissima Italia here in Hong Kong.

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Lam also gave herself a bit of a target by promising to make her first ever trip to Turkey before the 100th anniversary in seven years’ time. Supposedly she will have plenty of time to plan for it post-March 2017.

Hong Kong welcomes Indian Coast Guard Ship Samrat following last year’s goodwill visit of Indian Coast Guard Ship ICGS Sarang to Hong Kong in August 2015. Nicknamed the ‘Emperor’, the Samrat has a displacement of 2,577 tons, carries 20 officers and 120 sailors. It docked in Vietnam before arriving in Hong Kong waters and will stay until 2 November.

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Officiating the welcoming reception was new Indian Consul General Puneet Agrawal. Also on board were HKU vice-chancellor and president Peter Mathieson, Czech consul Dalibor Mička (who speaks perfect Hindi), as well as Nisha Electronic Industries chairman Manohar Chugh.

Alex Fok is a Harbour Times journalist monitoring Hong Kong’s daily political scene and diplomatic updates. He obtained his bachelor’s degree in Economics, Politics and International Studies from University of Warwick and his master’s degree in International Relations from the London School of Economics and Political Science. He is a former committee member of the Warwick-based Hong Kong Public Affairs and Social Service Society (WHKPASS) and was the chief editor of the society’s magazine – PASSTIMES.